Ain't no mountain high enough

You have to climb the Wudang Mountain at least once in your life time. You will be able to see your endurance, you will see where your determination can bring you.

And when I mean climb, I meant it, climb. Not take the cable car or ask the sedan man to carry you up the steps. Take the stairs from the bottom of the mountain, and CLIMB. Step by step, and, you will see what stairs can actually do. I climbed up and up and up the never ending stairs, every step with pain and ache. When your mind wants to bring you up further, your legs fail you. When you want to start walking to warm your body, your breath fails you.

We began as a group climbing and talking. It got quieter as the stairs got steeper. Then slowly we split up. The weather was so cold, we begun with three layers and a scarf. And as we climbed, we took them off one by one. So at half way up, I was only wearing one layer. I didn't know if I was feeling warm or cold. I was sweating and the cold rain was splattering on my face. The wind was making my bones chill. Temperature was below 15 degree Celsius when climbing, and below 10 degree Celsius when we reached the top cliff.

At many many points, I wanted to give up so much. I wanted to ask the man who was sitting by the path, eating grapes, for his sedan service. But then I saw Ash in front of me. Ash was fasting and didn't have breakfast, he couldn't drink water either. I saw that he can do it, and was even in front of me, so that made me more determined. There were many many exotic flowers and insects along the way, daddy long legs spiders that were climbing the stairs too.

I finally came in fifth, second girl following Wan. Made it up 4.3km of stairs in less than 2hours, enduring the wind and rain. It was really tough and tiring but I was happy that I didn't give up half way. And even happier that I had climbed and experience what it feels to be above clouds.